Klay Thompson
Klay Alexander Thompson (born February 8, 1990) is an American professional basketball player with the Golden State Warriors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Listed at 6'7" (2.01m), Thompson is the son of former NBA player Mychal Thompson. Thompson played college basketball for three seasons at Washington State University before being selected by Golden State with the 11th pick of the 2011 NBA draft. Thompson won an NBA championship with the Warriors in 2015, and he is a two-time All-Star and one-time All-NBA team selection. During the 2013–14 season, he and teammate Stephen Curry were nicknamed the "Splash Brothers" en route to setting the NBA record for combined three-pointers in a season with 484, a record they broke in 2014–15 (525) and in 2015–16 (544, ongoing). Early Life Thompson was born on February 8, 1990, in Los Angeles, California to Mychal and Julie Thompson. His father Mychal Thompson was the first overall pick in the 1978 NBA draft and spent his 14-year career playing for the Portland Trail Blazers,Los Angeles Lakers and San Antonio Spurs in the NBA and Juvecaserta Basket in Italy, while mother Julie was volleyball player in college. His older brother, Mychel, played basketball for Pepperdine University and has played in the NBA, while his younger brother, Trayce, was drafted in the 2009 MLB Draft by the Chicago White Sox. At age 2, his family moved to Lake Oswego, Oregon, where he was childhood friends and Little League teammates with fellow future NBA star Kevin Love. High school career At age 14 Thompson moved with his family to Ladera Ranch, California, and graduated from Santa Margarita Catholic High School in Rancho Santa Margarita in 2008. In his junior season he was named to the All-Area second team and to the Orange County third team. As a senior Thompson averaged 21 points per game and led SMCHS to a 30–5 record and a Division III State Championship appearance.16During the state championship, Thompson set a state finals record with seven 3-pointers in a game.6 He was named Division III State player of the year, League MVP, first-team Best in the West, and an EA Sports Second Team All American.1 Considered a four-star recruit by Rivals.com, Thompson was listed as the No. 6 shooting guard and the No. 51 player in the nation in 2008.7 College career Freshman season As a freshman, Thompson started all 33 games at Washington State University. He was named to the Pac-10 All-Freshman Team and Collegehoops.net All-Freshman Honorable Mention Team after leading his team in 3-point field goal percentage and free throw percentage, and averaging 12.5 points per game. Sophomore season Thompson began his sophomore season by leading the Cougars to the Great Alaska Shootout Championship, of which he was named Most Outstanding Player after scoring a tournament single game record of 43 points in the championship game.18 This was also the third highest single game point total in WSU history.1 After becoming the third fastest Cougar to reach 1,000 points, Thompson was named to the All Pac-10 First Team.19 He earned Pac-10 Player of the Week honors twice during the season and was chosen as a midseason candidate for the John R. Wooden Award.110 Thompson finished the season averaging 19.6 points, which was second in the conference.11 Junior season As a junior, Thompson again earned All-Pac-10 first team honors after leading the Pac-10 in scoring.1213 He became just the third Cougar to win first-team all-district honors from the National Association of Basketball Coaches twice in his career.12 In addition, he became the first Cougar to win Pac-10 Player of the Week three times when he won the award for the week of Nov. 22–28.14 He also won the award for the week of December 6–12.15 Soon after, Thompson was named one of the 30 midseason candidates for the John R. Wooden Award.16 In the 2011 Pac-10 tournament, he set tournament records with 43 points and 8 three pointers.17 Thompson finished the season by setting WSU's single season scoring record with 733 points.18 He is WSU's 3rd all-time leading scorer.12 College statistics Professional career Golden State Warriors (2011–present) 2011–12 season Thompson declared for, and opted to remain in, the 2011 NBA Draft after his junior season. He was selected 11th overall by the Golden State Warriors.18 This pick of a guard prompted speculation that the Warriors would trade starting guard Monta Ellis.19 Warriors general manager Larry Riley praised Thompson for his shooting ability and expressed confidence that Thompson would improve his defensive skills with new coach Mark Jackson.19 The NBA did not select Thompson for the 2012 NBA All-Star Weekend Rising Stars Challenge. However, in the four games after that decision, Thompson improved in all areas of basketball over his current season averages: points per game (12.5 over 7.6), shooting percentage (54.3% overall including 55.6% for three-pointers, up from 46.7 and 48.1), rebounds (2.8 from 1.6), assists (1.5 from 1.3), steals, and turnovers.20 The Warriors traded Ellis to the Milwaukee Bucks on March 13, 2012.21 The following game, Thompson scored a season-high 26 points in a loss to the Boston Celtics.22 A week later, he exceeded his previous high with 27 points in a win over the New Orleans Hornets.23 As of mid-February 2012, Thompson played around 17 minutes per game,20 but he played an average 30 minutes per game during the next month.24 At the end of the season, Thompson was voted to the NBA All-Rookie First Team. 2012–13 season On January 29, 2013, Thompson scored a season-high 32 points against the Cleveland Cavaliers.25 Warriors coach Mark Jackson said that Thompson and Stephen Curry formed the best shooting duo in NBA history.26 That season, the two combined made 483 three-pointers, the most ever by an NBA duo.a28 The Warriors defeated the Denver Nuggets in the first round of the playoffs and would be matched up against the San Antonio Spurs. On May 8, 2013, Thompson recorded a playoff career-high 34 points against San Antonio, hitting 8 out of 9 three point attempts, along with a career-high 14 rebounds. Thompson and the Warriors would go on to lose to the Spurs in six games. 2013–14 season In the opening game for the Warriors, Thompson scored a season-high 38 points, including 5-of-7 three-pointers.29 He and Curry set an NBA record for 484 combined threes on the season, besting by one the record they set the previous year.2 Thompson averaged 18.4 points, 3.1 rebounds and 2.2 assists on the year. Thompson and the Warriors entered the 2014 NBA playoffs as the sixth seed in the Western Conference and were matched up with the Los Angeles Clippers in the first round; they lost the series in seven games. 2014–15 season On October 31, 2014, Thompson signed a four-year contract extension with the Warriors.3031 The next day, he scored a then career-high 41 points in the Warriors' 127-104 win over the Los Angeles Lakers.32 On January 23, 2015, Thompson scored a career-high 52 points, with 11 three-pointers, in a 126–101 win over the Sacramento Kings. In the third quarter of that game, he scored an NBA-record 37 points for a single quarter, going 13-for-13 from the field, including nine three-pointers (also a league record for a single quarter). The 13 field goals tied David Thompson's (no relation) record for a quarter.b333435 On January 29, 2015, Thompson was named a reserve for the 2015 Western Conference All-Star team for the first time in his career.36 On March 8, 2015, Thompson hit 3 three-pointers against the Los Angeles Clippers to pass head coach Steve Kerr (726) on the NBA's all-time list.37 On March 17, he was ruled out for 7–10 days with a sprained ankle.38 On June 7, in Game 2 of the NBA Finals, Thompson scored a playoff career-high 34 points in a losing effort to the Cleveland Cavaliers.3940 However, the Warriors defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers in six games to win the NBA Championship and end their 40-year championship drought. 2015–16 season Thompson began the season averaging 17.2 points per game over his first 21 games, but failed to record a 30-point game over that stretch.40 That streak ended on December 8, as he scored a then season-high 39 points on 13-of-21 shooting in a 131–123 win over the Indiana Pacers, helping the Warriors extend their unbeaten record to start the season to 23–0.41 The Warriors' NBA-record start ended after 24 wins when they lost to the Milwaukee Bucks 108–95 on December 12.42 In the Warriors' next game, on December 16, Thompson scored 27 of his then season-high 43 points in the third quarter of their 128–103 win over the Phoenix Suns.43 On January 8, he recorded his third consecutive game with 30 or more points, finishing with 36 points in a 128–108 win over the Portland Trail Blazers.44 On January 27, he scored a season-high 45 points on 14-of-20 shooting in a 127–107 win over the Dallas Mavericks.45 The following night, he was named a Western Conference All-Star reserve for the 2016 NBA All-Star Game, earning his second straight All-Star nod.46 On February 13, he competed in the All-Star Weekend's Three-Point Contest and won the event after defeating Stephen Curry and Devin Booker in the final round. International career Thompson was a member of the United States national team that won the gold medal in the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup.He also won gold as a member of the Under-19 national team at the 2009 FIBA Under-19 World Championship. Player profile Listed at 6'7" (2.01m), Thompson plays the shooting guard position though he is also capable of playing small forward has established himself as one of the best shooters in NBA history. As of the end of 2014–15 season, he had a 84.6% career free-throw shooting average and a 41.8% career three-point shooting average; he holds the NBA record for most points in one quarter with 37. Early in his career, he was unable to create shots for himself and lacked a great deal of ball handle, something he worked on during the 2014 off-season. Thompson has established himself as one of the best perimeter defenders in the NBA. In addition to his athleticism, he Former head coach Mark Jackson, called Thompson "the best two-way shooting guard in the game". NBA career statistics Regular season Playoffs Personal Thompson faced controversy when he was suspended for his final regular season game at WSU after being issued a misdemeanor criminal citation for marijuana possession . After winning the NBA championship in 2015, Thompson and his father became the fourth father-son duo to each win a title as players, joining Matt Guokas, Sr. and Jr.; Rick andBrent Barry; and Bill and Luke Walton.44 See also * National Basketball Association portal *Thompson Family *Gallery:Thompson Family * Gallery:Klay Thompson Notes # Jump up^ Previous record was 435 by the Orlando Magic's Dennis Scott and Nick Anderson in 1995–96.27 # Jump up^ The 37 points broke the previous record of 33 held by George Gervin and Carmelo Anthony. The nine three-pointers eclipsed the mark of eight by Michael Redd and Joe Johnson.33 Category:NBA players